


Lost and Found

by Ariel_Hedgehog, Gardenia Queen (2GirlsInLove)



Series: 1 prompt, 2 writers [2]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Medical, F/F, challenge, prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-26
Updated: 2016-10-26
Packaged: 2018-08-27 02:10:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,693
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8383948
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ariel_Hedgehog/pseuds/Ariel_Hedgehog, https://archiveofourown.org/users/2GirlsInLove/pseuds/Gardenia%20Queen
Summary: What happens when two authors write separately for the same prompt?-When Regina opens the file of her new patient, she doesn't seem to remember why it is so familiar...





	

**Author's Note:**

> I've been wanting to try this challenge for quite some time now but I never found someone who I felt comfortable doing it with until I met Gardenia Queen. My friend, thank you for your patience, your incredible work and your talent.  
> Kingstonsong, thank you for the prompt and your patience as well. I hope we've pleased you with our little project.  
> I don't own anything but the mistakes, I'm not a doctor so any medical error are mine. Thanks for reading!
> 
> PS.: The prompt is at the end!
> 
> This part has been written by Ariel_Hedgehog.

Dr. Regina Mills picked up the next case on her ever growing pile and sighed. There was still so much to do before her much deserved holidays ten days from now. As she looked into the file, her growling stomach reminded her that she had been overdue for a meal two hours ago. ‘One last case before a break.’ she thought. She entered her consultation room while reading the file. E. Swan. Age: 5 Ulna fractures. Regina smiled at Belle’s handwriting, so much better than her own. Looking up from the file, she saw the little girl sitting on a chair, clutching her left arm and crying softly. The woman next to her was trying to comfort her but Regina could see she was doing a poor job.

“Hello! I’m Dr Regina Mills,” she said with a smile.

The woman seemed relieved to see her.

“Ah! Finally! I’m Mary-Margaret Blanchard and this is my student Elizabeth Swan. We’ve been waiting to see a doctor for hours now.”

Regina frowned. This was highly unusual. “Where are her parents?”  
“I called her mother as soon as we were settled here. I left a message on her cell phone and to her boss. She still hasn’t called me back.”

“And the father?” Regina asked.

“I don’t… have… one!” the little girl sobbed. “My arm! It hurts!”

Regina sighed. This was not good.

“Do you have a signed parental consent form? I can’t treat the child without it.”

Mary-Margaret started to rummage through her purse. “Yes. I have it somewhere. I took it before we left with the ambulance. I never thought I would need it, since I thought Ms. Swan would arrive quickly. Where the devil did I put this paper?”

Regina was losing patience, not that she had a lot to begin with. Her patient was suffering and her hands were tied. 

The teacher finally pulled a folded piece of paper from her hideous bag. “Ah! There it is! I knew it couldn’t be far.” Mary-Margaret handed it to Regina who read it quickly and gave it back; the form was signed, thus, she could proceed.

“Alright Elizabeth, I’m going to check your arm.” Regina said softly. 

“Pinky.”

“Does your pinky finger hurt too?” Regina asked as she took out the x-rays from the file. There was no mention of pain in the fingers in the initial report but maybe it had appeared after Belle had made her initial assessment.

“My name is Pinky!”

Regina threw a look at the teacher as she put the plastic film on the monitor. The ulna was broken in two places but at least the breaks were clean.

“She prefers to be called Pinky.” Mary-Margaret answered the unasked question.

“It’s because of my hair, and because I like pink, and the Pink Panther,” the child said, distracted from the pain for a moment.

Regina looked at the strawberry blond hair on the tiny girl and smiled. “Alright Pinky, I’m going to give you something for the pain and then I’ll take a look at your injury, okay?”

Pinky brought her arm even closer to herself and moaned at the pain. “It hurts! I don’t want you to touch it! I want my mom!”

“I already told you, your mom is on her way!” Mary-Margaret almost shouted at the child.

Regina looked at her horrified. She was a teacher, why was the woman so short? “There’s no need to be court with her, Miss Blanchard,” she admonished.

Mary-Margaret lowered her head in shame. “I know. I’m sorry Pinky.”

Regina bent so she could be eye level with the girl.

“Pinky, I have no intention of hurting you. I will give you something that will stop the pain and then I will treat your arm. You won’t feel it I promise. You’re being very brave.”

“Are you going to give me a shot?” the girl asked with widening eyes.

Regina kept a reassuring smile on her face. “Yes, but don’t worry. You’ll only feel a tiny little prick and then the pain in your arm will go away.”

“Promise?” Pinky asked, anxiously.

“I promise.”

***

When Emma Swan finally entered the examination room, with no consideration for the door, she was an exhausted nerve wreck. She walked up to her daughter and hugged her as tightly as she could.

“I’m sorry! I am so sorry! Are you okay?” she turned to Regina who had started to put Pinky’s arm in a cast. “Is she okay?”  
“MOM! I fell from the monkey bars and it hurted and Alex went to get Miss Blanchard and we gotted to an ambulance and we come to the hospital and we waited and waited and waited and Regina she gave me a shot in my arm and now it feels funny and she’s putting a cast and she said it could be PINK! Where were you mommy?”

Emma was trying to assimilate all the information her daughter had fired in barely a breath. Regina was trying to finish the cast but the child’s movements were complicating her task. She glared at Pinky’s mother, wanting her to release her grip and stop asking questions so she could do her job and maybe grab a protein bar in her locker.

“Yes. Where were you? I left a message on your voicemail and with your boss. You should have been here hours ago!” Mary-Margaret’s annoyance was barely concealed.

“Tell that to my boss who refused to tell me about your message until after my shift was over! My phone died, my car broke down so I had to take the bus from across town but did you know that the bus comes only once per hour? And that it takes lots of detours because of all the road paving being done? And that there’s traffic at this time of day?”

Regina put the last layer of pink fibreglass to the cast and got up to wash her hands. “Stay still for a few minutes, Pinky. The cast will harden,” she gently explained to the little girl, before turning to the blonde mother. “You could have taken a taxi or ask for a friend or a co-worker to drive you here. Stop trying to blame other people for your tardiness, no boss would do that to an employee if their child was in the hospital. Now where were you really?” Regina looked down at Emma’s shorts and very tight t-shirt underneath her red leather jacket. “On a street corner looking for a john maybe?”

As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Regina regretted them. Damn her for turning into a bitch when she was hungry! She saw the hurt in the other woman’s eyes as she pinched her lips to refrain herself from responding.

“Believe what you want, it’s what happened. I don’t have money for a taxi, I don’t have friends and my co-workers don’t have cars. Can we go?” Emma answered between her teeth.

“Yeah I wanna go home! I’m tired!”

Regina looked away from the green eyes that somehow felt familiar and turned to Pinky who was fidgeting on her chair. “Not yet. I’m sorry. We need to wait a few more minutes for the cast to set and then we’ll put your arm in a sling because it will be very heavy. I will send my assistant, Nurse Belle, to tell you what to do for your bath and to show your mother how to put the sling on for you. I will see you in six weeks for a check-up.” She went back to Emma to finish her explanations. “She will also complete the paperwork with you. If there’s anything in the next few days you can see your pediatrician. Have a good evening, Miss Swan. Goodbye Pinky!”

“Bye!”

***

In the locker room, Regina was munching on a protein bar when it hit her. She knew those green eyes, knew them very well. How couldn’t she have noticed? The name alone should have triggered her memory. Emma Swan. Her first… everything.

Emma had been a breath of fresh air in her monotonous life. It had felt as if she had been seeing colors after spending her life seeing black and white. They had been in love, inseparable, spending every moment they could together. The morning after their first night together had changed her life forever.

_Regina woke up with the sun in her eyes, they had forgotten to close the blinds last night. Her body felt deliciously sore in new places and it brought a smile to her lips. She stretched to hug her girlfriend but her hand couldn’t reach anything but cold sheets._

_“Emma?”_

_Opening her eyes, she saw that she was alone in her room and that Emma’s clothes weren’t where they had landed last night. Regina got out of bed and put some clothes on before she went downstairs to the kitchen where she hoped her girlfriend was. Instead, she found her mother, perfectly dressed and coiffed, enjoying a cup of espresso._

_“Good morning, mother. Have you seen Emma?”_

_Cora put her cup on the counter._

_“Good morning, Regina. I’m afraid Emma has left.”_

_Regina frowned._

_“She has? Has... has she said why?”_

_Regina tried very hard not to feel hurt by Emma’s departure._

_“She came downstairs about two hours ago and I heard her call her social worker. She asked to be moved to another state. She didn’t tell you?”_

_Regina felt her heart stop. She shook her head, thanked her mother and slowly went back to her room. The sight of the unmade bed brought the memories of the night before and Regina burst into tears._

Regina remembered all too well how her sadness had been followed by a deep anger. She had sworn off love and relationships and had thrown herself into her studies. To help with the stress of becoming an orthopedist, her father had bought her a horse which she rode every time she felt she couldn’t fill her brain with more information about the human body. That’s how she had met Daniel, the vet who had come to take care of Rocinante when a rock got caught into his shoe. The young man had been instantly smitten with her but it had taken Regina months to start seeing him as more than a friend.

They had gotten married after Regina’s graduation and gotten pregnant shortly after. Juggling motherhood with her job had been quite a challenge for Regina but Henry was a constant source of joy and Daniel had been very supportive. They had been very happy until one afternoon when Regina had been awoken from a much deserved nap with Henry by a detective who had informed her that Daniel had been murdered. A drug addict had gone to the clinic where Daniel worked and things had gone horribly wrong. Regina had been devastated and once again made everything she could to keep herself busy. Henry was one year old and took much of her free time and when had been old enough to go to preschool, she involved herself with charity work. She had never expected to see Emma Swan again.

Regina suddenly felt like she was eating cardboard. She threw what was left of the protein bar in the garbage and went back to work.

***

When Emma finally put her head on her pillow, she wished she could fall asleep right away. She was beyond exhausted. Her day had been horrible and the fear she had felt when Leroy had told her Pinky was in the hospital was indescribable. Now that her daughter was safely tucked next to her, on the bed, her little arm resting on a cushion, she could finally breathe. 

She had never expected to see Regina Mills again. Regina had been the one good thing in her life when she was fifteen. Regina had been her everything, the love she had never expected and never knew she had been craving. Then everything had gone wrong the morning after they had slept together. 

_Emma had let Regina spoon her and felt her girlfriend’s breath get deep and regular against her neck but sleep had never came. She had spent hours just thinking about their lovemaking and gently touching the arm Regina had wrapped around her waist. When the sun had started to come up, Emma had untangled herself from her lover’s embrace, put on her damp panties and Regina’s shirt and had went to the bathroom. She had been surprised to find Regina’s mother waiting for her on her way out._

_“Mrs. Mills! Good morning! Is there a problem?”_

_Cora had given her a tight-lipped smile and a once-over, making Emma feel more naked than she had been in the bedroom._

_“Miss Swan, your social worker has called. He said you have to get back home immediately. Something came up.”_

_Emma was nervous. “Did he say what?”_

_“I’m afraid not.”_

_Emma started fidgeting. She didn’t like the look on Cora’s face._

_“Maybe I should call him back? See what it’s all about.”_

_Cora had pinched her lips. “Unfortunately, my husband is already on the phone with one of his business associate and I’m afraid it’s going to take several hours. You should go home and I’ll tell my daughter that you will call her as soon as you can. She should get as much rest as possible.”_

_Emma had to refrain herself from saying something she would regret later. She didn’t have the best relationship with Cora. The older woman knew very well that Emma was always the one calling since her foster father had forbade her to use the house phone and she had to walk to the nearest pay phone, a mile from the house, to talk to her girlfriend._

_“I guess I better get dressed then. Thank you.”_

_Back in Regina’s bedroom, Emma had taken a moment to look at her lover. Regina seemed even more beautiful in the early morning light. Emma had gone to the bed and pecked her woman’s lips before she whispered in her ear “I love you”. She had gathered her things and quickly dressed before she left._

Emma still remembered how long it took to walk from Regina’s house to her own. Once she had arrived, she had found her social worker putting garbage bags in the trunk of his car. When he saw her, he explained that her foster parents had skipped town and that she was being sent to a group home on the other side of the state. Emma had understood that the garbage bags were filled with her things and that there wasn’t time to call Regina to let her know.

The new group home had very strict rules and it took a few days before Emma finally managed to get to a phone. When she asked for Regina, Cora had told her that Regina was furious with her and that she never wanted to speak to her again. Emma had gotten the message loud and clear and never tried to contact her again.

She had tried to heal her broken heart and forget Regina by dating several women but to no avail. They all had something to remind her of her first love.

Ruby and August were regulars at the fast food restaurant where she had started to work right after high school. The trio had become thick as thieves in a short amount of time, going out almost every night and even once to a fair where Ruby had won a stuffed Pink Panther which she had given to Emma. Their sex life had been amazing until Emma had discovered she was pregnant. Ruby had been furious that her plan to get pregnant by piercing the condoms had failed. August had been pissed off at them both and told Emma he didn't wanted anything to do with the baby.

Emma had decided to keep the baby and to stay away from relationships from now on. Life was tough but she managed to get by. She had never expected to see her Regina ever again.

To see her after so many years had been like being hit in the chest for Emma. The moment Regina had lift her head to look at her, her mind had been flooded with memories. But Emma had quickly felt she was the only one remembering, especially after the barely veiled accusations that she was a bad mother.

Emma sighed. She had enough on her plate with Pinky and work to not waste any time over a past relationship. She clearly hadn’t been as important to Regina as Regina had been to her. Emma closed her eyes and snuggled up closer to her daughter. “I love you, pumpkin.”

***

Ten days later, Emma and Pinky got out of the bus that had brought them to New-York. Emma had won the annual draft of the Enchanted Forest Foundation a few months prior and the prize was an all-expenses paid trip to the Big Apple for her and Pinky. The people from the Foundation had helped her over the years when she had been struggling with being a single mother and winning the draft had been a big surprise for Pinky and herself.

Emma had been sorely tempted to cancel the trip since she now had medical bills to pay, car repairs and needed to work extra shifts but the kid had been hyper about coming to New-York and since it didn’t cost her a penny, she had decided that a vacation was exactly what they needed.

They checked into their hotel and when Emma finally managed to get Pinky from the giant bathtub, they decided to go see the first item on their list: the American Museum of National History.

As soon as they were inside, Pinky took off running toward the dinosaurs’ exhibition.

“Elizabeth Eleanor Swan, stop it right there!” Emma yelled.

The cry startled Pinky who stopped in her tracks and collided with a little boy about her age who was running in the opposite direction.

“Henry Daniel Mills, what have I told you about running?”

Emma recognized the voice at once. She ran toward her daughter who was already up and helping the boy despite her injured arm. “You guys okay?” she asked.

“Yeah!” The boy was rubbing his head.

“Get your daughter away… from my son… Emma?” Regina was startled to meet the blonde here.

Emma took her daughter’s hand and gently pulled her toward herself.

“Hello Regina. So you do remember me then,” she spat angrily.

“I… uh…” Regina blushed. “Yes Henry, what is it?” she asked her son who had been tugging her shirt.

“I want to go see the pretty dresses mommy.”

Regina had no idea why Henry desperately wanted to see the exhibition about the First Ladies. “Sweetheart, that exhibition is next week when we’ll get to the Smithsonian in DC. Today we are seeing the dinosaurs remember?”

Henry pouted and crossed his arms on his chest.

“We’re going to see the dinosaurs too! Mommy, can we go together?” Pinky pleaded at her mother with puppy eyes. 

Emma was conflicted. She wanted her daughter to be happy but she didn’t want to spend another minute in Regina’s vicinity. 

“I think it’s a great idea!” Regina said.

Emma looked at her with disbelief. “You do?”

Regina nodded. “I think you and I need to talk about what happened the other day and… when we last saw each other before that.”

“Oh.” Emma wasn’t sure what to do but seeing that both children were getting antsy, she nodded and started to walk towards the exhibition. Regina took Henry’s hand and followed.

Once the kids' attention was focused on a dinosaur skeleton with the adults hanging back and keeping an eye on them, Regina decided it was now or never.

“I’m sorry about the other day. I turn into a bitch when I’m too hungry and frustrated and I was both.”

“I remember.” Emma said softly. “That’s why I always had some food on me when we were young.”

“I… never noticed until now… But yes, yes, you did.”

Emma crossed her arms on her chest to protect herself from what was coming.

“Regina, why are you here? Did you follow me?”

Regina couldn't help but feeling a bit offended by the accusation. “I didn't follow you. I am in New York because I sit on the Enchanted Forest Foundation board and we're having a photo op with the winner of our annual draft tomorrow. I decided to make this trip an opportunity to take a vacation with my son. What are you doing here?”

Emma squinted her eyes at the woman in front of her. “Well, that winner would be me. Funny coincidence wouldn't you say?” She uncrossed her arms and shoved her hands in the back pockets of her skinny jeans. “But… Let's forget about that for the moment. Regina, what happened 20 years ago? What have I done to piss you off so much you didn’t want to talk to me after… that night?”

Regina looked at her in disbelief. “What have you done? What have I done for you to ask to be transfer to a new home? Was I so bad?”

Emma frowned. “What are you talking about? Your mother said I had to get home and when I did I found out my foster parents had skipped town and when I managed to call you, your mother told me you didn’t want to talk to me. Ever.”

Regina shook her head. “No. She told me you left and didn’t want to talk to me. She… Oh my God.”

“What?”

“She lied to us. She didn’t want us together. Emma, I’ve never wanted to ignore you.”

Emma took a moment to process what she had learned. “So you wanted me?”

“Yes. Very much so.” Regina said softly.

“I shouldn’t have left before waking you. We could have avoided this whole mess. I never wanted to lose you.”

The two women looked at each other with new hope in their heart.

“So. May I buy you a cup of coffee?”

The End

**Author's Note:**

> Here was the prompt : “So what I had in mind was that Emma's kid (he or she) would be at daycare/kindergarten (the child is under 5) and Emma would be at work and her kid would need to go to the hospital, but nothing serious just like a sprained something, and Regina would be the doctor that took care of the kid. For that prompt I kind of went half meet-cute half them hating each other, like I thought Emma could arrive from her job looking kind of horrible and Regina would judge her and assume a lot of stuff and not being really shy about it, but Emma would just brush it off, and after Emma and her kid are gone she would learn that Emma's actually doing a really good job that makes her unhateable? Oh and please not snow and charming as her parents...”


End file.
